House passes cellphone unlocking bill that now only needs Obama's signature
House passes cellphone unlocking bill that now only needs
Obama's signature
NetworkWorld |Jul 25, 2014 11:05 AM
The U.S. House of Representatives has just passed a bill
that will once again give consumers the right to unlock their cellphones,
meaning the legislation is only a presidential signature away from becoming
law.
The Senate’s cellphone unlocking bill, S517, just passed
unanimously in the House of Representatives.
Now it just requires the President’s signature to become
law. It took 19 months of activism and advocacy, but we’re finally very close
to consumers regaining the right to unlock the phones they’ve legally bought.
I’m looking forward to seeing this bill finally become law - it’s been a long
road against powerful, entrenched interests - but it’s great to see citizen
advocacy work.
It’s important to note that the unlocking exemption that
is being reinstated will only last until the Librarian of Congress’s next
rulemaking, scheduled to happen in 2015. With such a strong signal from
Congress, it’s very unlikely that the Librarian will remove the unlocking
exemption.
President Obama’s signing of the bill would appear to be
a foregone conclusion given this reply the White Posted last March in response
to the petition.
The White House agrees with the 114,000+ of you who
believe that consumers should be able to unlock their cell phones without
risking criminal or other penalties. In fact, we believe the same principle
should also apply to tablets, which are increasingly similar to smart phones.
And if you have paid for your mobile device, and aren't bound by a service
agreement or other obligation, you should be able to use it on another network.
It's common sense, crucial for protecting consumer choice, and important for
ensuring we continue to have the vibrant, competitive wireless market that
delivers innovative products and solid service to meet consumers' needs.
The legislative process was not without problems,
however, as earlier versions of the bill contained onerous exceptions that
would have continued to make cellphone unlocking illegal for those who did so
in “bulk,” such as resellers and recyclers. That language was dropped from the
version of the bill that the House approved today.
Good Post.
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